Expects It Will Take Two to Three Years for Legal Marijuana Industry to ‘Mature’

The B.C government says it has received around 100 permits to operate private cannabis stores in the province. This comes as the province expects to have just one government-operated store, located in Kamloops, open by the time recreational pot is legal on Oct. 17.

“It is going to be a gradual process in the sense there will be a few stores ready. Local governments are the ones making the decisions on the kind of retail outlets they want, whether they want a government store or a private store or a mix of both or in some cases, they have indicated they don’t want any retail,” said Farnworth. “It will take two or three years for the system to mature.”

The applicants for the private stores will have to go through background checks and it is unclear how many of the current applicants will actually get stores. Currently, there are about 1,000 liquor stores in British Columbia, a combination of private and government-run stores.